How to heal a possible inner anal fissure??

[Ihurt]

Hi everyone.

I am not diagnosed yet, gastro keeps insisting I have IBS. I am still in limbo slowly getting tests done.

Anyhow, I had a nasty bout of constipation three weeks ago after I took a dose of IV zofran. It constipated the crap out of me. well I have been noticing this painful sensation in my anal canal. Went to my gastro doc a couple days ago. He did the whole finger in the rear exam and felt around. He said maybe I have a small fissure or something. He gave me a script for xylocaine to put up there a little to help with the pain.

Ok, I know some of you on here take sitx baths. I cannot do that because first off, I am way to prone to UTI's so I was told no on that one. Also, I dont think a sitz bath would help as my fissure would be up in the end up the anal canal where it would not even be exposed.

My queestion is this, what can I do to heal it??? I mean I keep getting these fleeting burny sensations in this area, it is like in the left upper side of of my anus. Also it feels like I might be getting anal spasms or something.. Not sure. It is just odd. Weird thing is that I have not had any blood or anything when I have a BM or wipe. Do fissure always bleed or no?? What can I use to heal this??? I mean I have been having this pain in the anal area for like over a week or so. I mean it got WAY worse after the doctor was poking around in there it seems. Any ideas are greatly appreciated...

 

[Dukeis]

I had a fissure years ago. They tried steroid suppositories and foam for months to no avail. They had to do surgery a sphincterotomy to get in to heal. I would have bleeding sometimes and other times I wouldn't.

 

[SarahD]

Fissures don't always bleed, no. My doctor prescribed me some glyceryl trinitrate (GTN) to heal an anal fissure - it's a waxy substance that goes just inside the anus and makes the sphincter muscle relax, stopping the spasms which prevent the fissure from healing. I was having intense pain with my fissure and the GTN made the world of difference.

If constipation is the cause of your fissure then you'll need to address that too. This is my problem at the moment and unfortunately I think it's caused my fissure to return. Can you try slowly adding more fibre to your diet? And drinking more water is supposed to help too.

 

[Ihurt]

Thanks for the replies.

Dukeis: wow, that is awful. I dont think I would ever let anyone cut on my anal spinchter. I hear it can leave a person incontinent. I could Not risk that as I also have huge urinary tract issues and am prone to nasty infections. I could not risk being incontinent for the rest of my life as that would really put me in hot water as far as my kidneys and urinary tract... I know it does not happen to everyone, but still it does happen. I am so sorry you had to have that done.

SarahD: Thanks for the suggestions. I am not having constipation now at all. It was like a one time deal after they gave me zofran at the hospital. I knew I should not have agreed to take that crap( I was not even having nausea!!!). The doctor there said it could help with intestinal pain as well( I dont know, I wish I never took that crap). OMG, I keep hearing about people who had to have surgery for it. Like I said, umm. NO frickin way I am having anyone cut me like that. That is just asking for more trouble in my opinion. y gastro mentioned that nitrogycerin stuff but said it had many nasty side effects so he just gave me the xylocaine. How the hell is xylocaine gonna help heal it though?? I can go to the bathroom and it does not hurt too bad, but afterwards I get the burny pain feeling in that one spot... How long does it typically take to heal them??? I also get cracks in my finger tips a lot too. Not sure if that is related or not. I mean I also wash my hands a lot so they could just be dry too and with it being winter and stuff. As far as what I eat, I have a very limited diet as everything seems to upset my intestines. I do eat 1 banana a day as well as 1/2 an avacado a day and a vegetable like carrots( well cooked) or green beans or squash everyday. I always drink a lot of water( 2 liters a day usually)...
Thanks for the advice.. The whole surgery thing is so scary. I mean is needing surgery to fix these common???

 

[Dukeis]

It turned out okay. Never gave me any problems at all after the surgery. I won't have to worry about that again after next month anyway. I won't have a rectum or a colon.

 

[Ihurt]

aww I am so sorry to hear about your upcoming surgery. I hope all goes well with it and you heal quickly afterwards.

It turned out okay. Never gave me any problems at all after the surgery. I won't have to worry about that again after next month anyway. I won't have a rectum or a colon.

 

[2thFairy]

Most fissures heal without surgery. It sounds as if your GI doesn't think it is a large one, so I suspect it will just take some time to heal. Several weeks for small ones to even months for larger fissures to heal is not uncommon. Every time you have a bowel movement, it is getting irritated and/or stretched, so you can see why it would take so long.

Xylocaine will help with pain only; however, if you are tense while having a BM (which all of here have been tense when we are expecting pain!) then that fissure is getting damaged even from that. So, in that thought, Xylocaine relieving pain is going to help you relax a bit, and therefore in a roundabout way helping you heal faster with this fissure.

 

[Ihurt]

Thanks 2thfairy. Makes sense what you are saying. I am trying the xylocaine to see how it goes. I am not having too much pain while I poop, it is just afterwards that it feels irritated in one spot in there... Hopefully this xylocaine will help.. Thanks again...

Most fissures heal without surgery. It sounds as if your GI doesn't think it is a large one, so I suspect it will just take some time to heal. Several weeks for small ones to even months for larger fissures to heal is not uncommon. Every time you have a bowel movement, it is getting irritated and/or stretched, so you can see why it would take so long.

Xylocaine will help with pain only; however, if you are tense while having a BM (which all of here have been tense when we are expecting pain!) then that fissure is getting damaged even from that. So, in that thought, Xylocaine relieving pain is going to help you relax a bit, and therefore in a roundabout way helping you heal faster with this fissure.

 

[deedee]

The xylocaine should help with the pain, but it won't really help with the healing. I had Botox injected into my fissures, which helped greatly with the healing. I also used nitroglycerin cream. Those things, in combination with getting my dx and starting treatment (6mp and Remicade) healed the fissures.

 

[igrik1986]

Fissures are very difficult to heal, I got one from hemorrhoidectomy, which still is not healed and painful already 9 months. I have got even suicidal thoughts, and terrible depression. Lost about 10kg

 

[FinallyHpe]

Hi everyone, this may sound strange at first but please try heat packs to stop the pain. I'm a 34 year old male who was suffering from 2 fissures for about 10 months. I got them from a botched banding procedure. The best thing you can use to stop the pain, in addition to diet change, is Heat packs. Really, heat packs. I was in so much endless pain from the fissures until I found relief by using heat packs. Take a heat pack, one of those ones filled with silicon beads that you heat in the microwave for a few minutes that then stay warm for about 40 minutes or so. You can find them at most pharmacies.

Gently press the heat pack directly up against your anus and keep it there, the heat forces the muscle to relax and stops the spasms, which stops the pain caused by the fissure. You can use a hot water bottle too as long as you can mold it to place up against your anus. Seriously. This saved me from so much endless fissure pain, it's like a concentrated hot bath focused directly where you need it, but without the inconvenience of running a bath and being stuck in a bath just to get relief. (I know baths are nice and all but not really always practical or accessible)

Best position is to lie on your back in bed, put your knees up like you’re going to do a sit up and then place the heat pack between your legs right up against your bum hole. Sorry for the graphic image but I can't really think of another way to describe it. Just be careful not to burn yourself, you want the heat pack/heat bag or hot water bottle to be hot but not so hot you burn your skin. It helps to wrap it in a pillow case that's soft and then if your heat pack is too hot, wrap it in more layers of the pillow case, which will protect you a bit more if it's too hot at first.

Before the heat packs I was taking dangerous amounts of pain meds to deal with the fissure pain which for me was all the time, including during the nights which were really hard... until I discovered the heat pack. Which thank God I did because they really work. Please try them, I understand this might seem silly and I haven't read it anywhere else but I know the suffering from fissures and this will help keep the pain at bay. Seriously, heat packs, heat bags or a hot water bottle pressed lightly up against your anus and held there, keep it held there and it will work. I sometimes keep it there for 15 minutes or more and then I take it off. Then when the pain starts up again I'll put it back and the muscle relaxes and the pain go's.
Try it. I had tried everything from which hazel oil in my bum to manuka honey in my bum (my wife called me sweet cheeks because of the honey), but the best thing to stop the pain has been the heat packs. Heat relaxes the muscle, stopping the spasm and the pain.

Ultimately though you want to find a solution to heal the fissure once and for all so I suggest the surgery. Though if you have Crohn’s then you need to research if that will affect the recovery for the surgery, I don’t have Crohn’s so I don’t know. I've had Botox and that did not work, in fact I was in a lot of pain afterwards, then I got the fissurectomy/sphincterectomy combo surgery and I am finally free from it all. I know it sounds nuts to get a surgical cut to fix a fissure but it’s the sure way to fix it. Conservative methods like Botox and Rectogesic Ointment did not work for me, in the end only surgery worked. I wish I had done the surgery first cause I went through months of pain and hopelessness that I could have avoided had I just done the surgery first.

Though very important, make sure you research and choose a reputable specialist to perform the surgery. Don’t just go with anyone, find and choose the best that you can cause for me it was the 3rd specialist that ended up fixing me with the fissurectomy/sphincterectomy. The first specialist caused the problem, the second specialist didn’t help and made my pain seem trivial until finally I researched and found the best in my area and he, the 3rd guy fixed me. So it’s worth it, pay a little more, travel a little farther if you have to but see the best that you can or at the very least someone with a lot of experience with exactly that surgery. If you’re in Sydney Australia then the Prince of Whales private hospitals “Sydney Colorectal Associates” really have a great team; Dr. Newstead fixed me and I am so thankful for him but he’s part of a group of several specialists there that all seem good.

Until then though heat pads, use heat pads to relieve the pain.

I’ve come on here to give people this info to help but sorry I don’t think I’ll come back to follow up cause honestly I just want to move on with things, so please take the advice above and save yourself pain and anguish.

Diet, Heat pads then surgery.

 

[POTTYTIME!]

My GI proscribed the steroid cream for the inside. Has never fully healed. At times feels like I am poohing razors. Sometimes Epsom salt bath helps

 

[defhero]

Updated my original post!
I have had mine for almost 1.5 years. Mine was considered a thrombose hemorrhoid, that burst. It was not in the anus, but near the anus. It did not leak into the anus, but when it hurt, it felt like it was in the anus. It hurt my body the same. Abdominal pain, scrotum pain, headaches, etc. Then just last month I realize it is not a hemmi, it was and abscess turned into fistula and now it is back to an abscess.

When it re-occurred (2 weeks ago) from the 1st burst 1.5 years ago, the pain got so bad, I could not sit or stand for more than a few minutes. I found myself laying down a lot. I even took the past 2 weeks off work. I felt I maybe had anal cancer. I finely called the doctor and went and seen him this past Tuesday - I have Kaiser. He checked and sure enough I have fistula/abscess. Only solution to him was, surgery. I asked him to give me at least 1 alternative solution and he would not. Made me a little angry with him, as surgery was his only option. I told him, it came naturally, it can leave naturally (per say). SO, I come home and research - people who had the surgery, to people who tried natural remedies.

Finding #1 surgery - A lot of people who have the surgery, it ends up coming back. Some right away, some later down the line.

I have read horror stories of people who had complications down the line were, incontinence (very scary) and some even needing a colostomy (what the?).

Finding #2 people who just live with it - I am finding that over half the people I know have it (living with, with no pain) and others who had it treated. The treated one's I know, all said it was cut open, cleaned out and left open. They were given antibiotics, to kill the infection from the inside out.

Finding #3 people who used natural remedies and it went totally away or at least made it tolerable to live with.


For me, I ask myself! Why did the doctor jump right to surgery, without giving me other options. This is not a life or death situation. It is just a pain in the rear (lol). Why can we not exhaust all other treatment, before we go to the surgery treatment?

Why have a lot of people gotten the needless surgery (setons, flaps, cutting of the anus muscle = which is a big no no (incontinence)), all to have it re-occur again? This tells me, surgery only treat the problem at hand, but not the over all source to the problem.

Surgery should be the last and final resort. Doctors do not see it that way!

I finely told the right person (my daughter, who has a step sister, who had the same exact thing as we do). She had a solution that worked and it went totally away, without surgery. It was a natural cure. I decided it couldn't hurt to try and I trust my daughters mom 100%. So as of right now, I am on that treatment which is similar to what others have stated on the internet (3 days and counting now). My 2nd abscess (1st one was 1.5 years ago) finely started draining and the pain went from an 8 (1-10), down to a 4 in just 3 days. That is already a remarkable change. I am impressed already, as just last week, I could not sit, like I am now. Draining still is happening and the natural meds I am taking religiously on schedule.

The 1st thought of others is, what am I selling or what product am I endorsing, lol? None!!! You buy this stuff right from your natural grocery store.

Others told me, I hate doctors, lol! No, I do believe there is a need for them, but they are not GOD and they are not always right! If you are to question everybody anymore and should not trust 100% your neighbors or friends, then why would you put 100% trust in doctors, who do not know where this kind of thing came from, in the 1st place?

I am not going for, I THINK THIS MIGHT WORK approach, when it comes to surgery (God knows, I have had my fair share of major surgeries, only because it was a must!).

I am keeping my fingers crossed and staying optimistic that this is working, specially because I am seeing a major change already.

Just a quick note: Up to last month, I treated it with hemorrhoid meds. It irritated it and did not make the problem go away, it made it way worse. If it was out there, I bought it, used it once or twice, then right into the med. cabinet with the rest.

When you have an abscess or fistula, hemorrhoid med. do nothing for it, but irritate it.

I am trying to get to the root of the problem, rather than buy some time and have to deal with it later.

I can truly say, I am improving tremendously and I can see life opening up again and most of all, I did not have to resort to the surgery (so far), as that is my last option. My last option resorts to, I can not walk or sit and NOTHING helps at all.

I can go further into details. Just let me know. I have been called out - your lying, it only helps you (no, I researched natural cures, before I tried it), you don't know me and my fistula, you p(o)s lol (wow), I have other problems that led up to it (I think no - the problem that created the fistula are all the same, crohns/ibs/etc...have nothing to do with it, but maybe doesn't help the matter any).

I am just trying to help myself and if I can help others (without gambling with surgery), then I feel I did a good deed too! :drink:

God bless and just know - more people suffer from these little demons than we will ever know. Most people do not like to share their situation, specially in that region and if they are minor!

 

[2thFairy]

And what is the cause of your fistula?

 

[UnXmas]

I haven't yet read all you post, defhero, but so far I've read a lot of criticism of doctors, when it seems that actually if you'd gone to a doctor much sooner in the first place, instead of researching and trying natural treatment, you might have sorted the problem a lot earlier. And if you haven't followed the doctor's recommendation and had surgery, how do you know surgery wouldn't have worked?

 

[defhero]

Abscesses and Fistula's are a mystery to the body and to doctors. Even the doctor said, we do not know what causes them, it just seems to be a growing problem.
I have heard everything from - poor diet (doesn't make sense to me, I am healthy and a very healthy eater), constipation (not me, I am always regular, with no forcing), ingrown hair (though wishful thinking, but does sound good and sort of make sense to the outcome), a minor natural cut in the area and then got infected, but truly no one knows! I have heard recently, could be the fillers and bi-products that they are putting in the food.
All I know is, if you ever have to deal with a abscess/fistula, it is like a demon on the area it lays in. It will make you feel miserable (when it gets worse) and it will make your life a living hell.
I have only one feeling on the matter - If it came naturally (or from something minor), than it should be able to leave naturally (with natural remedies). If not, then surgery is last resort.

 

[Clash]

defhero, the etiology of fistulas aren't a mystery on this forum. Members of this forum suffer from abscesses and/or fistulas due to Crohns disease. When the inflammation in the GI tract breaks through and becomes infected it creates an abscess or it tunnels creating a fistula. Most here have setons placed to help the fistula/abscess drain. The reason they can and often do return is because Crohns disease is a chronic illness and so the inflammation in their GI tract goes through remission states and flares.

 

[UnXmas]

Medical Doctors vs. Natural Healing Doctors do not like each other and do not agree with each other. Its about the $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$!

So natural doctors don't charge you, and you don't pay for natural remedies?

I live in the UK. We don't pay for healthcare. The NHS wants people to have as few appointments, treatments, surgeries, etc. as possible. My surgeon doesn't earn more for operating on me.

I understand that you found a treatment for your fistula and you want to tell people here about that treatment so they can benefit from it as well. I just don't see how finding that treatment has led you to assume that other treatments, treatments that you've never tried, are somehow inherently evil. Or why conventional doctors are evil and "natural" doctors aren't. One successful encounter with natural medicine doesn't mean you should start trying to scare people away from surgery that they could really benefit from having.

 

[defhero]

Again, surgery should be and always was a last resort, not a 1st resort.
My experience is, they wanted to jump right to surgery, without giving me any alternatives.
Do you know, most (if not all) will not die from an abscess or fistula?
A lot of people have lived with it, without any treatments, what so ever and are still alive.
Surgery should be the last thing and that's it.

 

[POTTYTIME!]

Well its looking like a resection for me so I will get my fistula taken care of at that time.

 

[Clash]

Do you know, most (if not all) will not die from an abscess or fistula?
A lot of people have lived with it, without any treatments, what so ever and are still alive.
Surgery should be the last thing and that's it.

defhero, I don't think that is accurate, especially pertaining to abscesses due to Crohns disease. Members of this forum know the etiology of their fistula and abscess and are usually put on meds such as remicade to control their inflammatory bowel disease and help with the fistulas. Fistulizing Crohns disease can be very serious.

Yes people can have abscess/fistulas unrelated to Inflammatory Bowel Disease but since this forum is a support group for those suffering with Inflammatory Bowel Disease then most experience of treatment is geared from that. Surgery is often not the first choice for those that have CD and abscesses or fistulas but can be warranted.

 

[defhero]

Pottytime, I will pray for you, that all goes remarkably well and that you have a speedy recovery and that you put this all in the past, with a bright new beginning!

 

[POTTYTIME!]

Thanks. This all kinda blind sided me all at once. I dont consider it bad news, its a step in the right direction.

 

[defhero]

defhero, I don't think that is accurate, especially pertaining to abscesses due to Crohns disease. Members of this forum know the etiology of their fistula and abscess and are usually put on meds such as remicade to control their inflammatory bowel disease and help with the fistulas. Fistulizing Crohns disease can be very serious.

Yes people can have abscess/fistulas unrelated to Inflammatory Bowel Disease but since this forum is a support group for those suffering with Inflammatory Bowel Disease then most experience of treatment is geared from that. Surgery is often not the first choice for those that have CD and abscesses or fistulas but can be warranted.

By all means, I agree 100% with you. It made me mad, that my healthcare provider (KP) gave me no other alternative to try, None! I asked and was still told no. Heck, I even mentioned painkillers and he wouldn't do it. It really frustrated me and left me to fend for myself.

 

[POTTYTIME!]

Defhero: I have the same problem with my GI. Blessed me out because I went to my family doctor to get pain killers. I told him I wouldn't take them just to get him off my back.

As for surgery, my GI dont wont to do surgery until the last option. That's why im doing surgery, down to last option for now. Lots of prayers for ya.

 

[defhero]

Hi Pottytime,
I pray for great success for your fistula surgery.
I am glad that you at least got to exhaust all options first.
I am just upset that I was not given no options, what so ever.
I have had surgery before, but this is an area that is very scary to be operated on, even if it is close to the anus and not in the anus.
People think that I hate doctors, but that is not true, but just like anybody else out in the world, trust is not just given, as so many people have been proven wrong on just trusting first.
I have had a bad doctor 15 years ago and now with this, I seem to get another one. If a doctor rushes judgement to go right to surgery, before suggesting other alternative solutions on non-life threaten situations, then I have to question his motives. My doctor is with KP and I already requested a new doc., but they are all in the same organization of KP and I am afraid their views are all the same there.
Kaiser use to be great, but have went down hill in the past 10 years. I plan to switch next year and get away from the #1 Obamacare insurance Kaiser.
My fistula (which 2 weeks ago was unbearable), is now 70% down. If the natural cure keeps working, then great. If it stops working or goes back to being unbearable, then my last option would be to get surgery. As there would be no way to live in agonizing pain.
Again Pottytime, God bless and I wish you a speedy recovery.

 

[UnXmas]

defhero - I'm sorry you've had bad doctors, but your posts contain an awful lot of criticism against doctors in general, as well as a distinction between conventional doctors and natural - alternative? - doctors, with the former portrayed as wanting money at the expense of patients' care. I've also had bad doctors who I found I couldn't trust - I've had doctors treat me in horrific ways, including sexual abuse. But you can't take the worst examples of people and treat everyone else on that basis, which is what it sounds like you are doing from the way you describe doctors in your posts. There is usually some truth in stereotypes, and sometimes it does make sense to talk in generalities, e.g. it may be fair enough for you to say that in your experience, conventional doctors are too quick to recommend surgery, but it's a bit of a jump to go from that to saying that conventional doctors as a group don't offer non-surgical options because they want the money they'll earn from patients having surgery, which seemed to be the message of your posts.

 

[2thFairy]

I'm still trying to figure out why defhero came to Crohn's/colitis support firum to tell us that doctors are wrong, do nothing, push surgery only, and that fistulas have a natural unknown cause and therefore a natural solution when they haven't taken the time to find out what we DO know here and what most people here are doing for treatment. Also, this thread was asking about fissures, not fistulas.

Everyone is welcome here, but please take some time to actually find out a bit of who we are and what we are dealing with before spewing a treatment at us that you are convinced is the cure after two weeks all because you had a bad doctor. I think most of us here have had several bad doctors. If you feel you aren't getting proper care or aren't being heard, definitely go find another doctor who you are comfortable with. Just please hold back a bit on broad statements of what does and does not work unless you start with "What worked for me is.." rather than "This does not work for anyone."

 

[defhero]

This is the second doctor that wanted to rush right into surgery and that is it. No options, no explaining and that was it. I do not think all doctors are bad, but the number of doctors who care, a way a doctor should care, is shrinking. You can call it Obama care or economy.
If you have a good/great doctor, then you are lucky. If not, then you are a number and you can feel like they are herding cattle.
They say I have IBS, with a ano fistula, with an exterior and interior hole.
I read about a lot of people who had the Fistula surgery and it did not fix anything, all to resurface. That would be considered a needless surgery.
If you have a ano fistula, no matter if you have crohn's, ibs, or are completely healthy, then you know it can be a killer pain, with leaving you scratching your head = where did it come from and why!?!
You can mask the symptom, but nothing is cured, unless you find the source. And NO, IBS, Crohn's or plainly being healthy, is not the source.oo: